Annette Funicello

Two days after Annette Funicello's name, handprint and honorary star were emblazoned onto the Hollywood Walk of Fame in mid-September, fragrant flower arrangements, congratulatory banners and colorful balloons filled her home in Encino, Calif. "I really enjoy being busy!" she enthused on a drizzly afternoon. "Especially having MS, it's better. When I have a bad day, I don't have time to think about it." Funicello wore her dark wavy hair swept back and her ears bespangled with rhinestone earrings in the...

One inherent advantage of producing for 10-year-old girls (give or take) is the freedom to borrow liberally from past works without such creative license being instantly identified. So beyond the obvious echoes of "High School Musical" and of course a vintage summer genre, "Teen Beach Movie" incorporates riffs from "Back to the Future" and even "Purple Rose of Cairo. " It's too bad the makers didn't do a slightly better job casting the key roles, but taken on its own terms the (overlong)

If you were, say, 6 to 10 years old between the years 1955 and 1960 it was hard to avoid the "Mickey Mouse Club" on a black-and-white television, even with bad reception and poor picture and sound quality. This was what your father got up on the roof to fix, turning the antenna now this way, now that, to improve your chance to get a clear, clean look at Annette Funicello, known to everyone as perhaps the nicest young person on the face of the Earth. You have to give Walt Disney...

If you were, say, 6 to 10 years old between the years 1955 and 1960 it was hard to avoid the "Mickey Mouse Club" on a black-and-white television, even with bad reception and poor picture and sound quality. This was what your father got up on the roof to fix, turning the antenna now this way, now that, to improve your chance to get a clear, clean look at Annette Funicello, known to everyone as perhaps the nicest young person on the face of the Earth. You have to give Walt Disney...

Jody McCrea, the actor son of Joel McCrea who appeared in a spate of westerns in the 1950s and '60s but was best known for his comedic work in the surf and sand as a regular cast member of the popular "Beach Party" movies, has died. He was 74. Mr. McCrea, whose mother was actress Frances Dee and who later became a cattle rancher in New Mexico, died of cardiac arrest April 4 in Roswell, N.M., said his brother, Peter. The strapping,...

By In the Loop reported by Christine Badowski, Brenda Butler and Patrick T. Reardon | June 23, 2002

Was your wedding anything like Tony 'n' Tina's? No. My wedding was typical Hollywood in one way and, in another, very small. [In 1962] I was just coming out of that teen idol period. Outside the church were hundreds of thousands of people and photographers. But at the actual reception, [Kay and I] only had 25 people--our parents and a few close friends. You sing during this play--have you ever sung at a real wedding? At the wedding for Annette Funicello's daughter, Gina. She's my godchild.

By In the Loop reported by Christine Badowski, Brenda Butler and Patrick T. Reardon | June 23, 2002

Was your wedding anything like Tony 'n' Tina's? No. My wedding was typical Hollywood in one way and, in another, very small. [In 1962] I was just coming out of that teen idol period. Outside the church were hundreds of thousands of people and photographers. But at the actual reception, [Kay and I] only had 25 people--our parents and a few close friends. You sing during this play--have you ever sung at a real wedding? At the wedding for Annette Funicello's daughter, Gina. She's my godchild.

These days, it's not cool to drool. But drooling over Annette Funicello is an exception. She is worthy of a certain amount of bonkers behavior by the aging, totally devoted daydream believers who make up her hard-core following. Besides, Funicello fans have had recent cause to celebrate. Walt Disney Records last month released "Annette: A Musical Reunion With America's Girl Next Door," a twin-CD set of 47 songs, including such dizzy Funicello pop nuggets as "Tall Paul,"...

Somewhat to his surprise, Robert Vaughn is having to deal with an early chapter in his acting career, long before his TV success in the mid-1960s series "The Man From U.N.C.L.E." In 1958, he starred in a film for American International Pictures, eventually called "I Was a Teenage Caveman." At 9 p.m. Tuesday, American Movie Classics (AMC) is presenting a one-hour special that honors AIP -- legendary for its low-budget exploitation films -- called "It Conquered Hollywood! The Story of AIP."

Annette: the dark, curly hair, the shy smile, and most of all, those big Mouseketeer ears. If you were a girl, you wanted to be just like her. If you were a boy, you were mesmerized by her pubescent blossoming. Annette Funicello was the quintessential '50s teen (or at least what a teen then was supposed to be): perky, popular and pure. And she was nice. NICE, NICE, NICE. Well, she still is. Annette is so nice you think Mother Teresa must have more enemies than she does. It's hard to believe...

Occupation: Celebrity. Birthday: Oct. 22, 1942. Birthplace: Utica, N.Y. Current home: San Fernando Valley, Calif. Marital status: Married to Glen Holt since May 3, 1986. Children: Gina, 28; Jack, 23; and Jason, 19. Working on: "A Dream Is a Wish Your Heart Makes" (Hyperion), my autobiography; a line of teddy bears sold on QVC; my perfume, "Cello, by Annette"; and the Annette Funicello Research Fund for Neurological Diseases. The last good movie I saw: "Scent of a Woman."

One inherent advantage of producing for 10-year-old girls (give or take) is the freedom to borrow liberally from past works without such creative license being instantly identified. So beyond the obvious echoes of "High School Musical" and of course a vintage summer genre, "Teen Beach Movie" incorporates riffs from "Back to the Future" and even "Purple Rose of Cairo. " It's too bad the makers didn't do a slightly better job casting the key roles, but taken on its own terms the (overlong)

Annette: the dark, curly hair, the shy smile, and most of all, those big Mouseketeer ears. If you were a girl, you wanted to be just like her. If you were a boy, you were mesmerized by her pubescent blossoming. Annette Funicello was the quintessential '50s teen (or at least what a teen then was supposed to be): perky, popular and pure. And she was nice. NICE, NICE, NICE. Well, she still is. Annette is so nice you think Mother Teresa must have more enemies than she does. It's hard to believe...

Occupation: Celebrity. Birthday: Oct. 22, 1942. Birthplace: Utica, N.Y. Current home: San Fernando Valley, Calif. Marital status: Married to Glen Holt since May 3, 1986. Children: Gina, 28; Jack, 23; and Jason, 19. Working on: "A Dream Is a Wish Your Heart Makes" (Hyperion), my autobiography; a line of teddy bears sold on QVC; my perfume, "Cello, by Annette"; and the Annette Funicello Research Fund for Neurological Diseases. The last good movie I saw: "Scent of a Woman."

Two days after Annette Funicello's name, handprint and honorary star were emblazoned onto the Hollywood Walk of Fame in mid-September, fragrant flower arrangements, congratulatory banners and colorful balloons filled her home in Encino, Calif. "I really enjoy being busy!" she enthused on a drizzly afternoon. "Especially having MS, it's better. When I have a bad day, I don't have time to think about it." Funicello wore her dark wavy hair swept back and her ears bespangled with rhinestone earrings in the...

Somewhat to his surprise, Robert Vaughn is having to deal with an early chapter in his acting career, long before his TV success in the mid-1960s series "The Man From U.N.C.L.E." In 1958, he starred in a film for American International Pictures, eventually called "I Was a Teenage Caveman." At 9 p.m. Tuesday, American Movie Classics (AMC) is presenting a one-hour special that honors AIP -- legendary for its low-budget exploitation films -- called "It Conquered Hollywood! The Story of AIP."

These days, it's not cool to drool. But drooling over Annette Funicello is an exception. She is worthy of a certain amount of bonkers behavior by the aging, totally devoted daydream believers who make up her hard-core following. Besides, Funicello fans have had recent cause to celebrate. Walt Disney Records last month released "Annette: A Musical Reunion With America's Girl Next Door," a twin-CD set of 47 songs, including such dizzy Funicello pop nuggets as "Tall Paul,"...